A seen over the week of May 10, 2013 on WAGM TV in a five part series, Rene Cloukey goes behind the scenes with Austin Theriault.
Part 1 – Austin Theriault is just 19 years old, but he has already had success on several stock car racing series. The Fort Kent native has moved to North Carolina to pursue his dream of racing at the highest level.
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By Lisa Maguire
The Northeast Mini Stock Tour made its one and only appearance this year in Maine at the Wiscasset Speedway last Saturday night. Under the bright lights, thirty-one cars raced in an action packed fifty lap feature.
Starting the lineup were heat winners Mike Mason in an Acura Integra No. 51, the No. 33 driven by Matt Sonnhalter, and Shawn Swallow driving the No. 04. In what proved to be a close-quarter race, leader changes at the start were swift. Sonnhalter drifted back in the pack. Car No. 53 driven by Glen Thomas wove through traffic and took second place, George Fortin in his No. 9. advanced from sixth place to third.
Five laps into the race, a caution was thrown when Mason slowed on the front stretch, then went off the track on turn one. Swallow became race leader. Thomas and Fortin were close behind, looking for the lead. This track order did not last long as Thomas was unable to keep up, and Fortin passed him in lap six. No. 88 driven by Emerson Cayer was proving to be a force on the field, and advanced to fifth from his eleventh place start.
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Plattsburgh, NY – Two weeks ago at Devil’s Bowl Speedway, Eight-time American Canadian Tour Stock Car Champion Brian Hoar lost the race by .028 of a second – the closest margin of victory in ACT history. The ACT 100 at Airborne Speedway on Saturday, May 18 was decided by the exact same margin, but this time it was all Hoar, earning the victory with an epic last lap pass of ACT Point Leader Jimmy Hebert, leaving rival Wayne Helliwell, Jr. to round out the podium in third.
In the early going, Hebert muscled by polesitter Eric Chase in the outside lane to gain the lead, bringing Helliwell in tow along with Tiverton, RI’s Ray Parent. The trio split from the field, setting a blistering pace that sent the leaders into lap traffic before lap 30 of the 100-lap event. Meanwhile, Hoar quietly worked his way from his 13th starting position into the top five.
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Dirty Dozen Cup: Reid Lanpher
Motor Mile Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
MANCHESTER, Maine – Reid Lanpher of Manchester, Maine, heads back to the seat of the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet for the fourth round of the Dirty Dozen Cup, with Twin 125-lap Late Model events at Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Va., on Saturday, May 18. The 15-year-old Lanpher posted second-fastest time in final practice at Motor Mile and had a career-best qualifying effort of third at the track when Dirty Dozen Cup first visited the .416-mile speedway last month, but the rain intervened and the race was postponed. Lanpher looks to head back and repeat his pre-race efforts while following up on his third-place finish in round three of the Dirty Dozen Cup at Southern National Motorsports Park in early April. Read Full Article →
MANCHESTER, N.H. – Bethany Moreau pulled up to the stoplight, waiting to make a right turn onto Lake Avenue next to the Verizon Wireless Arena. But when Manchester Police Department officers asked her to pull over for wearing her seat belt, a routine traffic stop turned into a lucky day for Moreau, close to 300 drivers rewarded with tickets to July’s New Hampshire 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Monday as part of the state’s Buckle Up NH campaign.
Magic Mile officials handed out “Good Tickets” to motorists who were seen wearing their seat belts by members of the MPD. Drivers were given two tickets to the New Hampshire 300 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on July 14 at NHMS.
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Lee, NH – Lee USA Speedway hosted the second race of the 2013 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series season on Friday night, with veteran driver “Super Dave” Sanborn taking down his first win of the season in the Benson Lumber and Hardware-sponsored 30-lap feature event for the Small Block Supermodifieds.
The action was halted by a red flag shortly after flagman Steve Grant had unfurled the green to let them loose, as a multi-car tangle collected nearly half the field in turn two. Most drivers were able to push off and rejoin the lineup, with a couple of drivers heading to the infield pit area for a quick once-over by their crews before re-entering the race.
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An overcast rainy day at the Speedway last Saturday caused the races to be cancelled. Racers were on hand and the track had been dried, but yet another round of rainfall began. Ken Minott, track promoter, said, “We wanted to give the guys who came here an opportunity to race, and we thought we had a small window to get the show in, but we were rained out.”
The Strictly Streets and Late Model Sportsman classes are rescheduled to next week, May 18, 2013. They will join the group one line up of racing divisions: Prostock, Super Stock, New England 4-Cylinder Prostock, and Thunder 4’s. The featured race of the week will be a North East Mini Stock Tour 50 lap event. This is the only appearance the NE Mini Stock Tour will make in Maine this season. Outlaw Mini and Mini truck groups are going to be made up at a later date.
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Durham, Maine – After five years of competition in the Amsoil Nelcar Legends Car Series across New England, Evan Beaulieu is moving up the racing ladder to the Pro Series Super Late Models this season.
Evan will race at Maine’s premier motorsports facility, the Beech Ridge Speedway, driving for former Beech Ridge track champion Dan McKeage.
He was happy with the results of his first test session in the car Thursday.
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Scarborough, ME – For the second time in as many races, Joey Doiron and the #73 Wild Willy’s Burgers race team dominated the Pro All Stars Series North “Southern Maine Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge 150” event at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway and finished in the runner up position. This time however, it was behind his Dale Shaw Racecars teammate and good friend, DJ Shaw.
Starting from the second spot in the first heat race, Doiron cruised to the heat win, putting him on the pole position for the 150 lap feature. From the start, Doiron never fell further than the second position, and lead most of the event. During the races final stages, a series of cautions slowed the field down to set up a dash for the finish, with Doiron and Shaw on the front row for the race’s final two restarts. The two friends drove each other hard, swapping paint a few times and putting on another great race for the fans. When the dust settled, Doiron went home with the second place trophy.
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Scarborough, ME – DJ Shaw and the #60 Precision JLM team returned to action this past weekend at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway for the second round of the Pro All Stars Series North season. After starting in the 19th position, Shaw made worked his way to the front and fended off Dale Shaw Racecars teammate Joey Doiron for the win in the Southern Maine Motors 150.
“This is a big win for us to come back here and run as well as we did,” Shaw said in victory lane, “I was surprised just how fast we got into the top ten, from that point on I knew if we just hit our marks we could win this race.”
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JOSH BAILEY NOTCHES FIRST CAREER WIN AT WISCASSETBy Lisa Maguire
This week saw Josh Bailey of Wiscasset score his first career win at the Wiscasset Speedway. Bailey leapt to the lead and left the pack behind him during the 25 lap Super Stock race. Car No. 05 driven by James Osmond and Adam Chadbourne in the No. 1, jockeyed for second position during the opening lap. On turn three Chadbourne passed Osmond on the outside. Osmond was unable to maintain his momentum and then allowed Bobby Mesimer in the No. 3 to overtake him in turn one of the following lap.
There was a caution in lap nine after Nate Yeaton in No. 27 slid onto the infield on the backstretch. There was a scramble for position after the restart. Bailey quickly moved to the lead once again. Mesimer tracked down Chadbourne, looking for an opportunity to pass. His chance came in lap eleven, and he passed Chadbourne on the inside on turn three. In lap twelve, Chadbourne and Osmond tangled on the back stretch. Osmond went to the pit with right front end damage. With no more cautions, the race quickly concluded with Bailey, driving the No. 2, in first. Once in victory lane, Bailey said, “I struggled bad last race, but this week makes up for it.” Second went to Mesimer, and 2013 two time Wiscasset Super Stock winner, Adam Chadbourne, placed third.
SCARBOROUGH, Maine – Brad Keselowski Racing development driver Austin Theriault of Fort Kent, Maine, finished seventh in the PASS North Series Southern Maine Chrysler Dodge Jeep 150 at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine, on Saturday, May 4. Theriault’s finish was his best PASS North Series finish of the season, and it extended his streak to seven consecutive Top-10 finishes in PASS-sanctioned races dating back to last season. Theriault started 15th after qualifying through the first round, and he raced as high as sixth on a late-race restart. Track position proved crucial late, particularly as the car’s handling tightened up over the course of the 150 laps, and he ended up seventh at the checkered flag.
LOUDON, N.H. (May 3, 2012) – The inside track to victory lane in July may just come from a testing session in May. Six drivers from six different teams will visit New Hampshire Motor Speedway for a two-day tire test May 14-15 in preparation for July’s New Hampshire 300 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
The Magic Mile announced the open-to-public Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company event will include two-time Daytona 500 winner Matt Kenseth of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota; the youngest winner in Cup Series history Joey Logano of the No. 22 Penske Racing Ford; Dave Blaney of the No. 7 Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet; two-time NHMS winner Clint Bowyer of the No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota; four-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet; and four-time NHMS winner Jeff Burton of the No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.
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BARRE, Vt. – Emily Packard of East Montpelier, Vt., turned in a career day at Thunder Road International Speedbowl by finishing 18th in the ACT Late Model Tour Merchants Bank 150 on Sunday, April 28. The finish marked the 16-year-old driver’s best career ACT finish in two career starts, and it came just hours after she won the second of four first-round qualifying races to earn a career-high 21st starting position in the 31-car field. Packard tried desperately to gain track position on the tight, quarter-mile bullring at Thunder Road and after a mid-race pit stop for chassis adjustments was able to finish in the Top-20.
WHO: Emily Packard, East Montpelier, Vt.
CREW CHIEF: Neal Woodward, Georgia, Vt.
TEAM: Emily Packard Motorsports No. 9x Northstar Fireworks/Berlin Optical Expressions Chevrolet
SPONSORS: Northstar Fireworks, Fecteau Homes, Berlin Optical Expressions, Yipes! of Barre, VT Shifter Karts, GossCars.com, Be The Match, Rutland Regional Medical Center, R.G. Paving
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JEFFERSON, Ga. – Austin Theriault of Fort Kent, Maine, turned one of his best qualifying efforts of the last two years into a strong sixth-place finish in the Southern Super Series Racing Radios 125 at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga., on Saturday, April 28.
The Brad Keselowski Racing development driver now has Top-10 finishes in each of the first two Southern Super Series races of 2013 against a very stout field of Super Late Model teams and drivers. Theriault qualified a season-best fourth at Gresham – and started the race from the third position after a redraw for starting spots among the Top-6 fastest time-trialers – and enjoyed solid night on the fast, banked half-mile.
“I’m really proud of the effort we had. We just missed it (on the setup),” Theriault said. “We should have probably freed up the car a little bit more before the race, but that’s just one of those things we’re learning as a team. We all go to the race track to win – and it wasn’t like we didn’t have a car capable of winning – but it was well worth the time and effort we put into the whole weekend.”
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